11 October 2022

THE LOST STONED PANDAS – Dark Side Of The Noom II (2022, LP/CD FRG Records)

RELEASE INFO:

Label: FRG Records

Format: LP + 10”, Album, Limited Edition (Deluxe set with Lathe cut & Signed Poster & Sticker), Pink Moon Vinyl, 60 copies

Format: LP, Album, Limited Edition, Luna Moon White Moon Vinyl (comes with A3 Poster & Large Sticker), 125 copies

Format: LP, Album, Limited Edition, Pink Moon Vinyl (comes with A3 Poster & Large Sticker), 125 copies

Format: CD, Album, Limited Edition (Picture CD in Gatefold Sleeve with Free Sticker), 150 copies

Format: CD, Album, Limited Edition (2CD Gift Set in Foil Pouch), Gatefold Sleeve, 50 copies

Release Date: 31 August 2022

After 2021’s “Dark Side Of The Noom” (though the vinyl version was released in March 2022), (Read our Review, here) The Lost Stoned Pandas throw at the market the sequel album, simply entitled: “Dark Side Of The Noom II”. The Lost Stoned Pandas are strongly related/connected with Wales’ instrumental Space Proggers Sendelica – everybody knows that by now – and the musicians who take part here are:

Glenda Pescado (bass), Pete Bingham (guitars, field recording), Colin Consterdine (keyboards, drum beats), Jack Jackson (drums, percussion), Kate Riaz (cello), Rhiannon Jones (viola), Paul Sax (violin), Chris Mekon (electronics).

“Dark Side Of The Noom II” contains just 4 long tracks (two on each side) and it continues exactly from where the previous album ended… The amazing Space-Proggy-Ambient Pandalicious Trip of “Dark Side Of The Noom” continues here with the opener “Luna Mermaid”, a cool atmospheric track, ambient-like with dreamy and wordless Enya-like vocals, leading the tune through a relaxing electronically flavored path. On the next one which is called “Moon Monster” the scenery becomes more spacey, still electronic though, but in a more futuristic and krauty way, with weird sounding (maybe sounds from a Moon monster?), adventurous drumming/percussion, emerging a unique spacey jungle-ish feel, a track that slowly transforms into a tremendous psych-beat-a-delic Space Rock tune! Side ‘B’ starts with “Lunar Madness”, this is trippylicious Space Rock, with a dynamic steady drum beat and a complex background landscape, a New Age Space Rock Instro, the violin adds a ‘Hawkwind-ized’ feel to the track while towards the end there’s a dive into more dark ‘psychic’ waters… The deeper, the better, so they say… The last track “So It Begins” closes the album in a spacey way, with a weird futuristic computerized environment, becoming creepy-a-delic and quite Space-Psych… So, the Journey of “Dark Side Of The Noom II” was quite exciting, satisfying, spacey & trippy, and all we can do at the moment is patiently wait for Panda’s next Trip, wondering in which direction the Lost Stoned Pandas are going to drive us… Is it going to be beyond the dark side of the Noon or deeper inside… TimeLord Michalis